The Four-Day School Week: Impact on Student Academic ...
Rural Educator
32(2)
Winter 2011
The Four-Day School Week: Impact on Student Academic Performance
Paul M. Hewitt University of Arkansas
George S. Denny University of Arkansas
Although the four-day school week originated in 1936, it was not widely implemented until 1973 when there was a need to conserve energy and reduce operating costs. This study investigated how achievement tests scores of schools with a four-day school week compared with schools with a traditional five-day school week. The study focused on student performance in Colorado where 62 school districts operated a four-day school week. The results of the Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) were utilized to examine student performance in reading, writing, and mathematics in grades 3 through 10. While the mean test scores for five-day week schools exceeded those of four-day week schools in 11 of the 12 test comparisons, the differences were slight, with only one area revealing a statistically significant difference. This study concludes that decisions to change to the four-day week should be for reasons other than student academic performance.
Key words: Four-day week; rural schools; flexible scheduling; school schedules; scheduling.
Johnson and Strange (2009) reported that 10,572,790 US public school students (19%) attend school in a rural school district. Howley, Theobald, and Howley (2005) claimed that the mainstream of society often believes that rural schools are, by their very nature, ineffective. Yet rural schools may be more innovative and creative than their suburban and urban counterparts. D'Amico and Nelson (2000) found that rural communities have a long tradition of pulling together to do whatever needs to be done to benefit students. Many times the innovations implemented in rural schools do not get a great deal of publicity.
One such innovation embraced primarily by rural schools is the four-day school week. Wilmoth (1995) studied 84 school districts on a four-day week, located in seven western states, and found that all but 13 districts identified themselves as rural. Furthermore, 73 of the 84 school districts had enrollments of less than 1,000 and 59 of the total had an enrollment under 500. The amount of time American public school students spend in school has been an issue of on-going discussion for decades dating back to the 1983 report, A Nation at Risk (Pischke, 2007). Supporters and critics of public education, including President Obama, are strong proponents of lengthening the school year and the school day of public schools to match what are seen as more effective programs within the international community, specifically Europe and Asia (Ellis, 1984; Koskie, 2009).
On the domestic front, the highly popular and widely touted Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) () charter schools have implemented a school day that runs from 7:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. each day (Henig, 2008). This longer day is combined with a school year that requires students to attend every other Saturday and also for three weeks during the summer.
Further research is required into the extent to which the increased student test scores observed in KIPP schools is due to the longer instruction time or to the culture of support and high expectations for academic achievement and behavior intrinsic to KIPP charter schools (Woodworth, David, Guha, Wang, & Lopez-Torkos, 2008). Cuban (2008) reported that there is little research to support that increasing the length of the day or the school year alone will produce any change in academic performance. According to Cuban, "In the past quarter century of tinkering with the school calendar, cultural changes, political decisions, or strong parental concerns trumped research every time" (p. 243). Although conventional wisdom might conclude that the more time a student spends in school the more the student will learn this conclusion may not be valid.
In an era marked by a drive to increase the number of days and the lengthen the school year, there is a group of primarily rural school districts in several states that are operating contrary to the trend by decreasing the number of days that students attend school, from the traditional five days per week model to a four-day school week (Yarbrough & Gilman, 2006). The focus of this study is on the educational impacts of the four-day school week to explore its impact on student achievement in rural schools.
Review of Literature
The motivation for implementing the four-day school week has been primarily to reduce operating costs. However, there are other positive factors that support a decision to implement the four-day week. Some school districts have found an improvement in attendance, both for students and staff, reduced student discipline
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problems, and increased student participation in extracurricular activities after implementing the four-day week. Once implemented, the 4 day format often proves to be extremely popular among students, parents, and staff. The review of the literature explores reasons for adopting a four-day school week and a variety of outcomes associated with that change.
History of the Four-day Week
The earliest four-day school week may have been implemented in the Madison Central School District, Madison, South Dakota in 1931 (Hunt, 1936). This unique program scheduled the required academic subjects for four days a week and extra-curricular activities on the fifth day. Although not exactly the format of the modern four-day schedule, it offered an alternative to the traditional model. In 1973, the Arab Oil Embargo caused many school districts throughout the northeastern US and across the nation to look at energy saving alternatives. Johnson (1977) reported that by switching to a four-day week, schools could save 20% on energy costs from savings in transportation and utilities. Stemmock (1975) claimed that the first four-day schedule to receive national recognition was Unity Elementary school in the Maine Administrative District # 3 in the early 1970's. It was reported that Unity saved $13,000 in operating costs in the first five months of implementation. Other districts in the Northeast experimented with a variety of schedules. Shrewsbury High School, Massachusetts, offered three alternative schedules to students including an extended day four-day schedule (Stemmock). The Cimarron School District in New Mexico also began the four-day week schedule in 1973 to save on energy costs (J. Gallegos, personal communication, July 14, 2009).
Financial Factors
Numerous factors have motivated school districts to change to a four-day school week. According to Smith (2009), the most prevalent factor motivating the implementation of the four-day week is the potential for financial savings. Proponents cite cost savings in transportation and utilities as the main advantage. The savings vary, however, depending on whether the school stays open on the fifth day for extracurricular activities, professional development, or tutoring. Most schools implementing the four-day week are small, rural school districts (Chmelynski, 2003). Findings of several studies (e.g. Achen, 2009; Chmelynski, 2003; Griffin, 2009; Shoemaker, 2002; Truesdale, 2009) indicated that cost savings necessitated by cuts to the annual budget were the major factor prompting the shift to the four-day week. The premise is that by operating a four-day week, a school district can save on utilities (e.g. heating buildings) and transportation (bussing).The MACCRAY Public
schools in west-central Minnesota voted to switch to a four-day week for the 2008-09 school-year with the anticipation of saving 10% on transportation and operating costs. The actual savings in operating costs was 18%, an equivalent of over $186,000 (G. Sims, personal communication, January 25, 2011). Grau and Shaughnessy (1987) looked at 10 New Mexico school districts on a four-day week and found a cost savings of 10-25% on fuel, electricity, and transportation. Despite the motivation to reduce costs, the savings are often not as great as first anticipated (Yarbrough & Gillman, 2006). In 2003, the Webster County School District in Western Kentucky had to cut almost 20% from its budget in response to a fiscal crisis in the district. The district of 1,800 students responded by implementing a four-day school week. Over a three-year period Webster County School District realized annual savings of 2% ($200,000) by moving to the four-day week (Yarbrough & Gilman, 2006). In a similar initiative, Morrow County School District in Lexington, Oregon, saved an estimated $250,000 in a $14 million budget, a cost reduction of slightly less 2% (Chmelynski, 2003). The Custer School District in rural South Dakota implemented a four-day calendar in 1995 with the intent to reduce its budget by $70,000. However, the savings were lower than the estimated target (Durr, 2003). The Cunningham School District in Cunningham, Kansas, received approval to implement a four-day calendar for the 2009-10 schoolyear and anticipated a savings of $45,000 (1.4%) on its $3.2 million operating budget for busing, utilities, and some labor costs (Truesdale, 2009). Summing up, these previous studies indicate savings achieved with a four-day school week vary greatly by districts, depending on the fidelity with which they adhere to cost saving measures. If the school facilities are completely shut down on the non-school day the savings will be greater than if the buildings are open for meetings and student activities. The costs savings are therefore predicated on how highly controlled and diligent the cost cutting elements are implemented. While financial savings are the main factor motivating the initiation of the four-day week, other factors emerged that may be equally powerful in promoting a shift to, or maintaining the four-day week.
Improved Attendance, Discipline, and Participation
Several authors (e.g., Shank, 2009; Shoemaker, 2002; Smith, 2009; Truesdale, 2009) reported that student and staff absences were reduced as a result of the four-day week. The day that school was not in session allowed students and staff to make business or medical appointments that normally would have required them to miss school. This change resulted in a decline in the need for and overall cost of substitute teachers. The extra day also allowed more time for teachers to plan (Truesdale). Further benefits of the four-day week include a reduction
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in reported student disciplinary incidents, and less weekly time spent commuting by both students and staff (Chemelynski, 2003). Moreover, participation in extracurricular activities increased when the Custer School District in rural South Dakota implemented the four-day week (Durr, 2003). Midland High School in Midland, Louisiana, used Friday for mandatory three hour academic sessions for students with failing grades; disciplinary infractions could also result in students attending school on Friday to participate in an on-campus work program. These policies motivated students to work harder and engage more during the four-day week (Chmelynski, 2003).
Popularity
Initially, the concept of a four-day week may be viewed negatively. Based on a Gallup Poll, Ray (2003) found that only 25% of Americans supported the idea of a four-day week as a means of saving money, while 74% opposed it. Ray postulated that one reason that support was low among people with children in school as well as among individuals with no children in school may be due to lack of understanding as to how the shortened week actually works. A fear exists that although seat time may be the same, increasing the length of the school day may be unproductive. York (2009), a critic of the four-day week, stated:
Because a four-day week means that at least one more hour, possibly one and a half, would be added to each of the four days school is in session, it's almost a given that this extra time will be wasted on "brain-dead" students and teachers. That is not an efficient approach to education. (p. 3) Initial concerns about the operation and effectiveness of the four-day week must be addressed to insure opposition to the change does not inhibit implementation. A systematic change process that educates staff, parents and community about the structure and operation of the fourday week is vital to attain a high level of buy-in and to alleviate concerns. Richburg and Wood (1982) postulated that before implementing the four-day week there should be support from 90-95% of the teaching staff. They found that one year after the four-day week had been implemented, 95% of the teachers strongly favored the four-day schedule. A survey of parents prior to the 2008 implementation of the four-day week in Cunningham School District, Kansas, revealed a 5 to 1 ratio for support (Truesdale, 2009). This higher level of support was the result of a concerted effort on the part of the school leadership to inform the community of the benefits of the four-day week (Truesdale). In an interview with John Briley, Principal of Midland High School in Louisiana, Chmelynski (2003) noted that the students and parents were highly in favor of the four-day school week. Initially parents were concerned, but after one year of
operation there was not a single complaint. Koki (1992) reported that schools implement a modified calendar or schedule to meet specific student needs and that although there is often initial resistance, parents and teachers are usually pleased with the results.
Implementation and Structure
According to an article in State Legislatures (Smith, 2009), 23 states and the District of Columbia currently prohibit schools or districts from having four-day school weeks because these states require a minimum number of instructional days per year, in most cases 180. Another 20 states give districts and schools the flexibility to move to a four-day week by measuring the instructional time requirements in hours rather than days.
When deciding on which day of the week to eliminate to implement the four-day week, the option is normally dropping Friday or Monday. Schank (2009), as well as Yarbrough and Gilman (2006), recommend that Monday be dropped because federal holidays or three-day weekends usually fall on Mondays and therefore reduce the need to add additional make-up days later in the year. On the other hand, eliminating Friday from the school week allows extra-curricular activities to take place without students missing school for distant athletic events (Richburg & Wood, 1982).
The implementation of the four-day week in Colorado originally scheduled four 7.5 hour days, which provided the weekly equivalent of a six-hour, five-day schedule. In fact, students on a four-day week may have more instructional minutes than students on a five-day week (Richburg & Sjogren, 1982). To ensure equivalency in instructional time, Richburg and Wood (1982) recommended that elementary schools on a fourday schedule should have 7 hours per day for 144 days giving an annual total of 1,008 hours. This contrasts to the five-day week schedule of 5.5 hours per day for 180 days, which provides 990 hours or the minimum required by Colorado state law for elementary schools. Four-day week secondary schools with 7.5 hours per day for 144 days provide 1,080 hours, which is the minimum required under Colorado state law for secondary schools (Dam, 2006).
Teachers and the Four-day Week
Yarbrough and Gilman (2006) found that teachers reported a lot of wasted time within the five-day school week, and that the four-day week forced them to focus on instruction to a much higher degree. The additional time devoted to planning and preparation that the four-day week provided helped them connect instruction and planning in a more effective manner. Additionally their approach to assigned homework was more focused and efficient (Yarbrough & Gilman). Durr (2003) found that
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teachers reported covering more content during the fourday week than they covered under the traditional five-day week. Blankenship (1984) noted that teachers and students apply themselves more effectively when they have only four days. The increased focus may actually increase the time on task students spend on their class work. Although cost savings may be a major incentive for looking at a four-day week, Kimmet (1986) suggested that the demands on teachers to do extra duties in small schools made the four-day week an attractive alternative because the additional time made available would allow teachers to have valuable in-service time. To this end, Kimmet proposed a four-day week with an additional half day for students on Friday morning, and remaining time in the afternoon utilized for in-service training.
More critical than the length of the day or school year is how time is actually used in the classroom. Cuban (2008) pointed out the critical nature of time utilization:
The crude policy solutions of more days in the year and longer school days do not even begin to touch the deepest truth that what has to improve is the quality of "academic learning time." If policy makers could open their ears and eyes to student and teacher perceptions of time, they would learn that the secular Holy Grail is decreasing interruption of instruction, encouraging richer intellectual and personal connections between teachers and students, and increasing classroom time for ambitious teaching and active, engaged learning. (p. 247) The four-day week is popular with teachers and provides a high degree of flexibility; however, the quality of any program or schedule should be judged upon the degree to which the program is beneficial to achieving a higher level of student academic performance.
Educational Achievement and the Four-day Week
Although the potential for long term cost savings has been the major factor in the implementation of the fourday week, the most important question to be addressed is whether the four-day school week increases, decreases, or has a neutral impact on student achievement. Shoemaker (2002) stated that "Experts have documented increased attendance, improved morale, and fewer disciplinary problems in four-day schools. However, according to what little research has been done, the four-day week has no measurable effect on student achievement" (p. 9). According to Dam (2006), "The jury is out on the question of student performance. If performance is measured by standardized test scores, only one study has been completed comparing districts" (p. 8). Daly and Richburg (as cited by Dam) examined scores in five rural Colorado school districts on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills for a period of four consecutive years. They identified two cohorts of students (n=62 and n=45) and followed their scores for four years. The students were taught on a
five-day week schedule for the first two years and then switched to a four-day week for the next two years. They found that the switch to the four-day week had no effect on student achievement. Other studies of limited scope point to an improvement in performance utilizing the four-day week. Yarbrough and Gilman (2006) examined the Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills (CTBS) scores in Webster County School District in Kentucky from Spring of 2002 and 2003, when the district was on a traditional five-day calendar, and in Spring 2004 and 2005 when the district utilized a four-day calendar. While grade 3 and grade 9 scores on reading, math and language increased in all areas, including Total Battery (a summary of all scores for reading, math, and language combined), it should be noted that test scores in the district had been on an upward trend before the four-day week was implemented. Yarbrough and Gilman concluded that while the four-day week may have had a positive impact on test scores, at the very least it did not negatively impact student performance. Chmelynski (2003) reported that at Merryville High School in Merryville, Louisiana, the ACT scores rose from an average of 18.7 during the four years before implementing the four-day week to an average of 20 since the implementation of the schedule. School officials also reported that grades had increased and the number of honor roll students had doubled in the junior and senior high school. Grau and Shaughnessy (1987), in a study of 7 New Mexico school districts with a four-day week, concluded that the academic performance of students on standardized achievements tests were comparable to the state averages and that the schools had a collective drop-out rate of only 3.3% compared to 8.1% for the rest of the state. They also observed that in 12 Colorado school districts operating a four-day week there were some gains and some losses in student standardized test scores, but no clear evidence that students on a fourday week performed better or worse than their five-day counterparts. In a study of the overall test score gains in 10 New Mexico school districts on the four-day week, McCoy (1983) reported that student achievement was not negatively affected and many school districts reported gains. Overall, students on the four-day week scored at least as well as students on a traditional five-day week. Wilmoth (1995) found that of 84 school districts surveyed, 68% of the school districts reported an increase in student performance while only 6% of the school districts reported a decrease in student standardized test performance. Richards (1990) compared nine rural school districts in New Mexico that had been on a fourday week for eight years with nine similar districts that utilized a traditional five-day week. Looking at CTBS total battery scores for grades five and eight for the eight year period, the four-day week students scored significantly higher (p ................
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